In December, reigning Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho will put his belt on the line against UFC veteran Alessio Sakara in Italy.
While the winner of that bout will walk away as the promotion’s 185-pound king, Alexander Shlemenko believes his showdown with Gegard Mousasi on Friday night in the Bellator 185 headliner on Friday night will say more about the top middleweight in the California-based organization.
“First of all, I do not want to think past this fight. No disrespect to Carvalho or Sakara, but I think the winner of my fight against Mousasi is the true Bellator champion,” Shlemenko said on the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Beatdown” show.